Washington, DC/Compare
Capitol Hill vs Southwest
Capitol Hill and Southwest are two official neighborhood clusters in Washington, DC. Capitol Hill is the calmer DC Code map (84 vs 58). Walk is a wash (38 vs 39). Southwest has the lower ACS median ($2,213).
Data period. ACS 2024 5-year (2020-2024) · MPD Sep 2025 – Aug 2026 · OSM Oct 2026. ACS and MPD retrieved 2026-10-01; OSM retrieved 2026-10-01. Editorial copy last revised Sep 2026.
Scores
Fit axes among official Washington, DC neighborhood clusters.
| Axis | Capitol Hill | Southwest |
|---|---|---|
| Safety | 84 | 58 |
| Schools | 50 | 50 |
| Walk | 38 | 39 |
| Cost fit | 100 | 100 |
| Vibe | 38 | 48 |
| Median rent | $2,341 | $2,213 |
| Median home | $1,001,504 | $496,837 |
| Population | 30,060 | 16,380 |
| Commute to Downtown | 14 min | 12 min |
| Commute to Capitol | 6 min | 14 min |
| Commute to Navy Yard | 12 min | 10 min |
Living numbers
Who rents, how old, how much crime, how many shops — beside the scores.
| Fact | Capitol Hill | Southwest |
|---|---|---|
| Renters | 44% | 69% |
| Median age | 36.5 | 36.3 |
| Median income | $167K | $113K |
| DC Code per 1k | 24.9 | 28.9 |
| Groceries / 800m | 16 | 5 |
| Transit stops / 800m | 78 | 81 |
| Parks / 800m | 81 | 110 |
| 311 last 14 days | — | — |
Rent
Rent since 2014
ACS 5-year median gross rent for Washington city. Up 50% since 2014. Cap Hill is 20% above the 2024 city median. SW is 13% above the 2024 city median.
Overlapping 5-year ACS windows (B25064), not asking rent. Census does not publish a rent series for each official neighborhood, so the line is the city place. Dashed marks are each area’s ACS 2024 median.
Which to pick
The same numbers as the table, in sentences. Nobody wins the city.
Pick Capitol Hill if the quieter map matters more than the scene and you want the quieter, family-leaning read. Safety is 84 vs 58. Capitol Hill is tagged family on this map; Southwest is not. Read both pages before you decide.
Pick Southwest if you want the cafes and the night and the rent gap is the point. Vibe is 48 vs 38. ACS median rent is $2,213 vs $2,341. Read both pages before you decide.
Capitol Hill
Cluster 26 is Capitol Hill and Lincoln Park. Row houses, the park, and a violent rate of 1.6 per 1,000. Eastern Market is the errand people mean. Navy Yard is the new buildings south, its own cluster. The corridor north of here is Stanton Park.
$2,341 median rent · safety 84 · walk 38
Southwest
Cluster 9 is Southwest Employment Area, Southwest/Waterfront, Fort McNair, and Buzzard Point. Search the Wharf and you land here. Waterfront apartments and a federal edge. The park count of 110 includes the Mall within 800 meters, not a hundred local parks. Navy Yard is the newer towers east, its own cluster.
$2,213 median rent · safety 58 · walk 39
Common questions
Same pair, said in questions. The numbers are in the tables.
Which is cheaper, Capitol Hill or Southwest?
Southwest is the lower ACS median: $2,341 vs $2,213. About 69% rent in Southwest vs 44% in Capitol Hill. Survey medians, not a listing you can message tonight.
Is Capitol Hill more walkable than Southwest?
Walk is basically a tie (38 vs 39). Count groceries if you care: 16 in Capitol Hill vs 5 in Southwest, inside 800 meters.
Which is safer on this map, Capitol Hill or Southwest?
Capitol Hill is the calmer DC Code read (84 vs 58). Combined rate 24.9 vs 28.9 per 1,000. Visitors count in those numbers.
Which scores higher for families, Capitol Hill or Southwest?
Capitol Hill leads the school axis (50 vs 50). Nearby rating is thin vs thin. Median age 36.5 vs 36.3. Southwest has more of the night. Neither number is a school assignment.
Which has the shorter commute to Downtown?
14 minutes from Capitol Hill to Downtown, 12 from Southwest. Southwest is the shorter weekday. Not this hour's traffic.
If you drop both
Closest official neighborhood cluster that is not Capitol Hill or Southwest: Navy Yard. Cluster 27 is Near Southeast and Navy Yard. Capitol Riverfront is the search that means this row. ACS rent is $2,760 and 87.6% of households rent — the most renter-heavy cluster in this set. The waterfront west of the channel is Southwest, its own cluster.
Scores are relative among official Washington, DC neighborhood clusters with the same editorial weights. Read the method.